RYAN Rubio paints and sculpts sculpts ghostly figures in his fourth solo, ?Forms and Satisfaction,? at Avellana Gallery (until August 31).

The show represents a visual evolution from his first one-man at the Cultural Center of the Philippines.

?I no longer use studies, it is useless. I always find myself painting pure from my heart, my gut,? he says

Today his works become a product of an evolving style in terms of subject and form.

Through the years (he began exhibiting in 2004), we find a transition from surrealism to expressionism, and a hint of impressionism that seems to evolve into abstraction.

The artist admits to a predilection for abstraction, as he finds this language more appealing.

?I really have nothing in mind when I painted this collection,? he says. ?I just allowed the painting to find its own form. Perhaps I am now selfish in a way because, this time, I have no intention of relaying a message or meaning to my audience.?

In what the artist describes as a grueling process of painting over painting, his works now give the impression of a tendency to completely obliterate subject and form including color.

His work ?Red, Blue, Green, Yellow, White, Black. Yes! I Am Satisfied!? is a 6ft X 8ft oil on canvas. The work was done for two months with daily overlaying of paint.

He would paint a complete picture only to repaint again and again, lifting styles, forms and color from previous works, until he was satisfied.

After six layers of paintings, the final product finally gave in to its own form -- a black-and-white composition of ghostly human forms that seem to emerge from a mist of grayish strokes and drips.

What attracts the viewer are the white faceless forms where eyes, nose and mouth are reduced to staring black dots that seem to float amid the obliterated hair, head and the gloomy background.

Rubio?s previous works used to tackle the subjects of life, death and the afterlife, in Bosch-like idiom. Here we found thin-limbed, white, naked expressive figures in a surreal setting.

This theme belonged to a period in his younger days when he became active in Christian activities outside the Sunday Mass.

He lost his father when he was a child, which could account for his interest in death.

Rubio?s succeeding works became darker and more personal. His facial studies became distorted.

?Form and Satisfaction? continues to hint at this distortion. The floor and table sculptures in cement, wood and steel portray these monstrous facial deformities as Rubio fully exploits the material in rich textures. The ghostlike renditions merely hint at humanity.

Indeed, the process of painting layer
upon layer until all color has gone is also reflective of the artist?s approach to subject matter. Perhaps it is no longer vital to portray and identify meaning when there is too much of it.